Explore the past, experience the beauty. Hiding between the great Tablelands and the vast Atlantic Ocean sits quiet Trout River. While proclaiming itself to be Newfoundland’s best kept vacation secret, a more accurate account would be Canada’s best kept secret. This destination should be on every travellers list when exploring Newfoundland. Situated 86km from Deer Lake International Airport, in the glorious Gros Morne National Park, it is a rare and beautiful find nestled within another rare and beautiful find.

A local couple explored every kilometre of the East Coast Trail. All 265 of them. Living in Portugal Cove, they had convenient access to the East Coast Trail -- but never lost their entusiasm and sense of awe as they travelled in just past their own backyard.

On Friday, September 20 we awoke to sun and patchy clouds and it promised to be a good day to explore some more community trails. From Norris Point we drove to nearby Rocky Harbour to check out 3 trails that were new to us. We stopped first at the 500 meters long Salmon Point Lookout trail which is at the far southern end of Rocky Harbour. We parked next to the cemetery (21 U 0432236 E and 5493025 N) and walked uphill along a well marked path.

On many of our past hiking trips to Gros Morne our focus has been on the longer trails that the national park is well known for. We certainly enjoy hiking Gros Morne Mountain or the spectacular Green Garden trail but the communities in the park have developed some nice trails so that became the focus of our most recent trip. The advantage of these trails is that they are often short and in the communities where people may be staying so can be done after supper or in the morning before heading off to another destination.

A bus dropped us off at the side of the road where a small flag, set beside a narrow path that led into the forest, indicated the start of the trail. It was not a simple walking trail, there were some difficult parts, but it was beautiful. Halfway along the trail there was a lookout. I felt as though I was standing on top of the forest. All I could see were the tops of trees stretching out toward the open ocean in the distance. As I stood there catching my breath and taking in the beauty, I could almost have believed I was the only person on the planet....this is the chef hike at The Gathering Festival in Burlington Newfoundland

One of last season’s “must see “ shows at the Gros Morne Theatre Festival in Cow Head was Newfoundland Vinyl which celebrated Newfoundland music from the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s. And as Jeff Pitcher, the festival director told us recently “How could we resist not putting together another show with different songs and different performers for this season. There are so many great songs written by Newfoundlanders from that era“. And a real bonus is having Allison Crowe, a talented singer/songwriter in her own right as the musical director for the show.

Every day I come across dozens of inspiring photos and videos of travellers making their way across the province, happily ticking items off their bucket list one by one. From kayaking with whales, to eating chunks of glacial ice, to seeing the odd moose or two, in Newfoundland & Labrador, it’s pretty easy to check off a multitude of once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

The next day Sunday, July 14 we headed for St. Anthony were we had booked with the Northland Discovery Boat Tour (http://www.discovernorthland.com/) . Since we had a 1:00 pm sailing, we decided to see the Grenfell Interpretation Centre (www.grenfell-properties.com) which is close to the boat tour wharf. The Grenfell Interpretation Centre tells the amazing story of Dr. Grenfell and his selfless devotion to the health care and general wellbeing of the people of southern Labrador and the Northern Peninsula.